San Francisco Opera invites you and your family to attend FREE screenings of our Opera-in-an-Hour Movies presented throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. To learn about where you can catch a screening of our family friendly operas, click here.

On Sunday, April 27 San Francisco Opera Center and the Merola Opera Program conclude the 32nd season of the Schwabacher Debut Recitals with New Zealand tenor Pene Pati and pianist Sun Ha Yoon. Together, they will present a program of recital favorites by Richard Strauss, Roger Quilter and Paolo Tosti, as well as a selection of songs from Pati’s native Samoa, for which he will accompany himself on guitar.

Incest. Dragons. Bastard sons. Unexpected love stories. Girls disguised as boys. Why, George R.R. Martin took more than one page from opera when he created his epic series Game of Thrones! And so as we eagerly anticipate the premiere of season 4 on Sunday night, we at San Francisco Opera give you 15 Ways Opera is like Game of Thrones:

Always an exciting recital, New York Festival of Song's Steven Blier presents In the Memory Palace this Sunday, March 30 at 5:30 p.m. at Temple Emanu-El’s Martin Meyer Sanctuary. A part of the Schwabacher Debut Recitals, Blier will be joined on stage by current Adler Fellows soprano Maria Valdes, mezzo-soprano Zanda Švēde, tenor A.J. Glueckert and baritone Hadleigh Adams. We asked Steven to share some thoughts on the program and what exactly is a Memory Palace.

Dreaming of your San Francisco Opera mainstage debut? Here’s your chance! On April 4 and 5, we will be holding auditions for a number of supporting roles in our summer production of Show Boat! If your singing chops are not as great as your acting chops - no problem! We are seeking non-singing male and female actors for the roles listed below in this beloved work by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II. Stage parents take note: we’re also searching for girls between the ages of 7-11 who can sing and act for the role of “Young Kim” an integral role in the show and the perfect opportunity for the next broadway baby! You just might find yourself onstage with opera superstars Heidi Stober, Patricia Racette and Michael Todd Simpson, along with legends of stage and screen Bill Irwin, Harriet Harris, Kirsten Wyatt and John Bolton in Francesca Zambello’s grand production. Take a look to see if you might be a perfect addition to the Cotton Blossom!

If there’s one thing we San Franciscans like, it’s a reason to dress up in costume. Sure, Halloween in SF is pretty epic, but we don’t need to wait until October to come up with a good excuse to get creative, put on our dancing shoes, watch some make up tutorials and put on a costume! We’ve got Bay to Breakers for those who wish to run (or, ahem, stumble…) in costume; Pride and the Folsom Street Fair for those who wish to parade in costume; SF Symphony’s Masquerade Ball for those who wish to be classy in costume. Who doesn’t know someone going to Burning Man this year? When’s the next movie sing along at the Castro Theater? What ever will you wear to your friend’s RuPaul’s Drag Race viewing party? Maybe this year you’ve finally been talked into entering the Hunky Jesus pageant on Easter. Whatever your reason—if you need one at all—dressing up is a big part of our culture here in the Bay Area and San Francisco Opera is about to give you a major leg up at your next costumed event! Our amazing costume department is culling through racks, drawers, shelves and boxes from floor to ceiling to offer up hundreds of items for sale at our Costume Shop Sale on March 22 & 23! You do not want to miss this. Trust us.

Introduction

Backstage at San Francisco Opera is a fascinating, fast-moving, mysterious and sacred space for the Company’s singers, musicians, dancers, technicians and production crews. Musical and staging rehearsals are on-going, scenery is loaded in and taken out, lighting cues are set, costumes and wigs are moved around and everything is made ready to receive the audience. From the principal singers, chorus and orchestra musicians to the creative teams for each opera, in addition to the many talented folks who don’t take a bow on stage, this blog offers unique insight, both thought-provoking and light-hearted, into the life backstage at San Francisco Opera.